Life’s a beach!

Fisheries monitoring Squamish band
project to reinforce banks of Capilano

A MAJOR Squamish Indian Band construction project
under way in the mouth of the Capilano River has raised
conceras about potential damage to the river's salmon

stock.

Bat the Department of Fisheries
and Oceans (DFO) said it is
monitoring the construction work
to ensure that there are no nega-
tive effects on fish in the river.

Construction crews have block-
ed off part of the river and have
opened up a second channel to
allow saimoan to pass upstream.
Dump trucks and heavy-duty dig-

By Surj Rattan
News Reporter

gers and graders have been work-
ing on shoring up the banks of the
river,

“We're doing flood control. ft's
to protect Our interests, We're at

tempting to deal with the river to
maintain our intecests,° said band
fisheries warden Dick Williams.
Bruce Reid, of the DFOs*
Fraser River division, said the
Squamish band has received per-
mission from the DFO and the
provincial environment ministry to
raise the banks of the river.
“Following flood damage hast
year, the Squamish Indian Band
hired a@ company to protect the
RV park and te reinforce their
banks and remove some sediment,
Its work that we're quite aware

SES AT a RS : ERA
DOOR ON THE NORTH SHORE SINCE 1969

of and we're watching it to make
sure it’s being done according to
plan,”* said Reid.

“They had to divert the river
over in a way that did not impede
fish passage. The work has gone
very well" he said.

Reid added the DFO's main
concern is that the construction
work does not prevent fish stocks
from swimming upstream in’ the
river. The construction project
started Aug. 2 und ts scheduled to
be complete by Sept. 15.

The News has received several
telephone cally enquiring about
the construction work, One caller,
who refused to be identified, said
he does not think the construcnon
work should be allowed to be car-
ried out while salmon are swimm-

Eileen Hall and the
Savary Island Pie Co.

Lifestyles: 25

NEWS photo Cindy Goodma:

WILLIE SANDERSON (left) puts the finishing touches on another summer project -
burying his buddy Brant McLeod in the sand at Ambleside.

ing upstream.

“Um surprised the Department
of Fisheries and Oceans allows
them (Squamish Band) to do it
while the salmon dre going
upstream. We are concerned that
it's disturbing the salmon
stream.”' said the caller. This is
beine done for the Indians and we
all know who's paying for it. If
someone put a gas pipeline across
the river, Greenpeace would be all
over them.

“Over ul Mosquito Creek, the
indians have been allowed to do
some work there but when we
wanted to do some work in the
yacht area they said no. A lot of
fishermen are concerned,” he ad-
ded.

emepenenes
Ss eee td